Christian Humanism?
Clayboy has posted a thought provoking blog post entitled, Fresh Expressions of Funeral, which is well worth a read.
In examining the provision of funerals in the UK, he makes this statement:
I have said before that I think Christian humanism offers far more to the celebration of human life, love, meaning and value than does an atheist humanism.
I have to confess that this is the first time I’ve come across the term Christian humanism. I also have to confess that even though I’ve had a cursory look online, I still can’t get my head around this concept. Here’s Wiki on the subject:
Christian Humanism is the belief that human freedom and individualism are intrinsic (natural) parts of, or are at least compatible with, Christian doctrine and practice. It is a philosophical union of Christian and humanist principles.
[.....]
Christian humanism saw an explosion in the Renaissance, emanating from an increased faith in the capabilities of Man, married with a still-firm devotion to Christianity. Plain Humanism might value earthly existence as something worthy in itself, whereas Christian humanism would value such existence, so long as it were combined with the Christian faith. One of the first texts regarding Christian humanism was Giovanni Pico della Mirandola’s Oration on the Dignity of Man, in which he stressed that Men had the free will to travel up and down a moral scale, with God and angels being at the top, and Satan being at the bottom.
Here’s an intro to a website dedicated to Christian Humanism:
Is it possible to be a Christian without a belief in God? I believe the answer is yes, that in our time being a Christian without a concept of God is both possible and necessary for those who find the life and teachings of Jesus compelling but have difficulty with the concept of God in traditional Christian theology. The various articles on this website argue in favor of a non-theistic form of Christianity that is reasonably called Christian Humanism.
Given the fundamental premise of traditional Christian theology that we cannot bridge the gap to god with philosophy or science, that we cannot know god except through Jesus, that at least part of the meaning of the Trinity in Christian theology is that Jesus is god in the flesh living among us, and given our difficulty with that premise and our suspicion about the possibility of any meaningful talk about god, it may seem a stretch to talk about non-theistic Christianity but it is that improbability to which I have come in my search for a meaningful and rational basis for a personal faith.
Well, I’m still none the wiser and I can’t get beyond seeing Christian Humanism as a paradox. Does it make sense to anyone else or am I having a mental block?
Interestingly I also happened upon this in Wiki:
A 2005 survey published in Encyclopædia Britannica found that the non-religious made up about 11.9% of the world’s population, and atheists about 2.3%
Although there are many factors which make it difficult to quantify the number of atheists in the world, this does seem a surprisingly miniscule number.
Tags: Religion Society
August 13th, 2010 at 11:59 am
This sounds like me:
” I believe the answer is yes, that in our time being a Christian without a concept of God is both possible and necessary for those who find the life and teachings of Jesus compelling but have difficulty with the concept of God in traditional Christian theology.”
The problem for me about theism is always going to be the lack of evidence and no amount of going on about Noah’s ark is likely to convince me.
August 13th, 2010 at 12:06 pm
Thanks Gordon. Love the Noah’s Ark comment..
It’s really unlike me, I can usually squeeze ideas and concepts in my mind even if they are in tight tension, but this one’s got me baffled.
I’m gonna have to study this one a little more.
August 13th, 2010 at 12:13 pm
Surely its just taking the teachings and example of Jesus and applying them in daily life whilst remaining non committal about the existence of God?
I watched a Christian TV programme last night which was making it pretty clear that if you are a Christian and don’t believe in a young earth you are going to be in trouble (i.e. not raptured and have a terrible time although you will eventually be saved). As I have often said, the doctrinal doors are getting narrower and narrower and we can’t all cope with that at a human level. Maybe Christian humanism is the solution?
August 13th, 2010 at 12:20 pm
Surely its just taking the teachings and example of Jesus and applying them in daily life whilst remaining non committal about the existence of God?
Ah, OK if that’s what it is then I can fully understand that as a concept.
In regard to the “Christian” TV programm it’s so disheartening to see these folk tacking on so much rubbish, they are actually creating hinderances to the pure and simple gospel.
Coincidently, I read a good blog post today that touched on this very point:
Biologos – Biblical and Scientific Shortcomings of Flood Geology, Part 2
I always read their blog posts as they keep me somewhat sane…
August 13th, 2010 at 12:32 pm
Stuart, allow me to leave a link to an early post of mine which might help clear things up a bit:
http://clayboy.co.uk/2009/06/i-am-a-humanist-and-i-object-…/
August 13th, 2010 at 12:46 pm
Brilliant thanks Doug….
August 13th, 2010 at 7:21 pm
Hmmm… Why would a Christian feel the need to add “Humanist”to the title? Surely it’s redundant and misleading.
A common definition of Humanism is “…the rejection of religion in favour of a belief in the advancement of humanity by its own efforts.”
Hence the term “Christian Humanist” makes no sense. Many Humanists, including myself, admire and take on board many of the Christian teachings about what it is to be a human. Such concepts as the “Golden Rule” make great sense with or without religion.
But if you no longer believe in the God of the Bible then surely you should just say that you are a Humanist and be proud of it! No need for the “Christian” insurance policy tag.
Though I have to admit it was a long time before I “came out” and had the courage to pronounce publicly that I was now a Humanist. It’s certainly a way to kill a conversation stone dead!
August 13th, 2010 at 7:48 pm
Jim, that definition may be common in your circles, but it doesn’t make it right. Christian humanism” has been widely used in artistic, literary and historical studies for half a millennium and means nothing like your definition.
Of course, like Humpty Dumpty you are free to use words to mean whatever you want them to mean, but it will rather limit your ability to have a conversation.
August 13th, 2010 at 9:51 pm
But Doug; isn’t that the point? Christian humanism has indeed been widely used in artistic, literary studies, but referring to other periods in history.
However, some who now call themseves “Christian humanists” seem to have changed the meaning to suit their own agendas – some, for instance arguing that it possible to be a Christian without belief in God. I have to admit I don’t understand how that is possible.
Definitions and meanings do change over time. The definition I gave was not my own but that in Chambers English Dictionary. You could rightly accuse me of taking the word Humanism in isolation, but I’m not sure how it limits my ability to have a conversation? I do not share your view but I’m willing to be persuaded.